Goucher College undergraduates can earn both a Bachelor's degree and the M.A. in Cultural Leadership & Management in just five years through our accelerated 4+1 program.

This pathway allows you to begin graduate coursework during your senior year, saving both time and money while developing the leadership skills, cultural grounding, and organizational capacity needed for meaningful work in mission-driven settings.

How does it work?

• Goucher undergraduates can “double count” up to 15 credits of M.A. in Cultural Leadership & Management coursework toward both their M.A. and their B.A.
• These "double-counted" credits are billed at the undergraduate rate.
• Once the student graduates with their B.A., they have already made significant progress toward their M.A.
• As a graduate student, credits are billed at graduate tuition.
• Students will take courses in the summer and the J-term to complete the program in 5 years.

How to Apply

We operate under a rolling admissions model for the B.A./M.A. accelerated master's. Interested Goucher undergraduates must provide:

• A completed online application specific to the 4+1 accelerated master's (no application fee required).
• Your most current cumulative Goucher GPA, information regarding your major and/or minor, and anticipated undergraduate graduation date.
• A minimum of one letter of recommendation to be completed by someone who knows you well enough professionally or academically to give an informed opinion of your intellectual ability, capacity for sustained self-directed study, personal qualifications, and professional potential. The recommendation process is completed online through the graduate admission portal.
• Your Goucher College advisor’s name and email.
• A written essay (1-2 pages, double spaced in 12 pt. font) answering the following question: What are your professional goals, and how will this accelerated master’s program help you achieve them?

Questions? Contact the program director, melanie.lytle@goucher.edu, for program or application queries.

When will I know my admission status?

Applicants will know their admissions status within 3-5 business days of submitting a full application.